In this section we look at the best e cigarettes to help you quit. We cover the smaller more cigarette sized electronic cigarettes, “cig-a-likes” and also the slightly larger vape pen or vaporizer and put them together for you to compare. The smaller e cigs are a must when first breaking the habit as they feel like a cigarette, a larger vape device will make it difficult to quit smoking, they just wont feel right. The one you choose should depend on what you feel would be the most comfortable vape device to help you transition away from smoking. All are excellent vape products and more detailed reviews are available from the links shown in the comparison chart.

Best E-Cigs and Best Vape Pens compared

Our vape brand of choice for 2018 is: #1 V2 e-Cigs

Each month we analyse the top UK review sites which cover well over 50 of the best e cigarettes, vape pens and vaporizers and here we summarise the results. Whether you decide to buy a small scale e cigarette, a vape pen or vaporizer one brand features in the top positions on most review sites. We have found them to consistently rate V2 (Vapour2 in the EU and UK) as the best e-cigarettes for some time. Their smaller e cig starter kits and vape pen kits reliably feature in the top position of our vaporizer and best electronic cigarette reviews, reflecting their popularity, reliability and quality products.

Buying either the smaller e cig kits or the larger vape pens is a personal choice and V2 have a wide selection of both types of vaping devices for you to choose from. The Xeo Void in third position is also an excellent choice, offering German design in a solid well built vape pen.

Check out the top UK e-cigarette review sites that we polled to find the best electronic cigarette. V2 e cigarettes have come out top. Looking forwards, they are likely to be in the best e-cigarette charts throughout 2018 as V2 continues to bring out new and improved products with the same great quality that makes them so popular.

The batteries used are considerably more powerful than those used by most of the competition – 4.2 Volts and 380 mAh compared to the average 3.7 Volt batteries used by other companies. This significantly improves the life and performance of the battery and is often overlooked by review sites.

What makes V2 the best e Cigarette brand?

V2 is frequently rated as the favourite e-cigarette by both users and review companies. Their Classic starter kits are ideal cigarette substitutes and offer both refillable and pre-filled cartridges. The small size of the Ex-Series and Classic e-cigarettes allow for an easy transition to vaping and this familiarity will help in stopping smoking.

V2 have an excellent range of e-liquid flavours, as well a wide and exciting range of e-cigarette accessories, vaping kits and alternatives that will suit the vast majority of e-cigarette users and vapers. All their e-cigarettes have a good battery life, and produce vapour that is thick and consistent. From those wanting the best e-cigarette starter kit to try out vaping, to the more experienced vaper or heavier smokers you can be sure that V2 has an excellent e-cigarette kit or vaporizer to suit.

More importantly – from a health perspective – V2 e liquids are tested by an independent lab for purity to ensure there are no harmful impurities. You can obtain an online lab report for your specific batch of e-liquid by entering its reference number online: :Example here

The “power e-cigarette”

Of particular interest to those working from home and using an e-cigarette is the 5.1 volt V2 power e-cigarette which is a connected vape pen that does not require recharging nor does it lose its charge. Plug and play directly to your PC or portable USB for ultimate vaping.

Your E-Cigarette Kit buying guide

The UK e-cigarette business is on the cusp of huge success. With the advent of new vaporizers, advanced e-cig users are now looking for the best vaporizer – a larger scale device. As smokers seek out the best electronic cigarette as an alternative to smoking they will look for the best e-cigarette UK product with the best vapour, taste and quality. It will become apparent that many retailers have jumped on the bandwagon in an attempt to saturate the market with poor quality Chinese imports that have simply been re-branded.

The number of reviews are also increasing at a pace. Switching to vaping is a serious process, a process that will involve getting the best quality e-cigarette UK available. There is a world of difference between poor quality devices and those that have been well designed to be safe and enjoyable.

The difference in price between poor quality kits and the best vapour cig kits is negligible. See the savings calculator below and other sections of the review.

See the 2018 Winners best e cigarette UK

What about buying a cheap e-Cigarette kit?

The focus should be on quality and not the discounts or half price sales that many electronic cigarette companies and similar review sites tend to offer. You need to get the best e-cigarette starter kit at outset. When one compares the overall savings of using the e-cigarette over normal cigarettes, any initial discount or “save 50%” deals are insignificant and should be viewed with a certain amount of scepticism – see the calculations below.

An initial look at UK e-cigarette websites might give you the impression that vaping is more costly than smoking cigarettes. However this is due to the comparative cost of a pack of cigarettes compared to the initial “set up” cost of an e-cigarette starter kit. We need to quantify the actual cost of e-cig use over time – and we look at a 12-month comparative period. There is a lot of information on the web to suggest that vaping is considerably better than smoking from the health perspective and this “cost” should also be taken into account.

Buying a quality e-Cigarette brand

The quality of the e-cigarette product you choose is the foundation of a successful transition from smoking to vaping. Depending on which UK brand you first try, your experience of “vaping” may well be significantly different to other people’s. A good quality vape pen or vaping device is vital and generally there is not a significant cost difference between good quality and poor quality products when compared to the cost of smoking.

Best E Cig: Wont break the bank

Best e Cig starter kits

The cost of vaping will depend on which electronic starter kit you decide on as well as the ongoing costs of the refills and whether you are able to use e-liquids in conjunction with the refills of the specific kit you purchase.

For an example of ongoing costs – V2 costs £1.35/cart whilst Jenson e-cigs or e-lites charges over £2.30 per cart – on a 20/day smoker on average this will work out over £350 p.a. extra – 72% more expensiveVIP e cig. Nicolites, blu, Green Smoke and Vype all have more expensive running or ongoing costs.

Of course this is how some of these companies make more money from you!

What about large scale e-cigarettes

I need to mention the alternative type of larger scale electronic cigarette ie. vape mods. These were introduced primarily because e-cigarettes were, at that time, less effective then they are now. Low vapour production, poor quality battery life and badly designed cartomizers/refills forced some manufacturers into making a large scale device in order to accommodate more “power”. This gave better vapour production. In many ways these are cumbersome and unsightly and certainly many can be rather indiscreet.

Switching from the smaller, normal cigarette to this larger alternative can for some cause avoidable issues. Simply put, they do not have the same feel as a cigarette. With the advancement in the technology of smaller electronic cigarettes and the vape pen, we now have the ability to buy a quality product with extremely high vapour production, excellent battery life and well-made cartomizers, all in a small “cigarette sized” package.

However just a word of warning – many electronic cigarettes are still of pretty bad quality – so do the research and choose wisely (and knowledgeably).

How to quit smoking with your new e cigarette

For a successful transition, it is imperative that you have the right equipment so that you set yourself up to succeed – as an ex-full time smoker I fully appreciate how insidious this habit is and how easy it is for us to make any excuse to return to the nasty cigs. “Cant find a battery”, “its not fully charged”, “its running out” and many other excuses may get in the way – however a carefully planned entry can and will increase the chances of success. See our 5 Step Guide to quit smoking

Planning what you need to buy in your e cigarette kit

My suggestion would be to have a good quality starter kit – with at least 3 batteries and the ability to charge the batteries via the mains and via a USB. Then it is very important to add to your basic kit and get a Portable Charging Case (PCC). This PCC is a bit of a saviour because it means that irrespective of where you are you can charge your e-cigarette without having to plug it in to the mains.

Additional long battery for those days you just don’t have time to stop and recharge.

An e-cigarette that has continuous power supply via a usb point – laptop/pc etc – for when you are at home or in the office and just want it there. These are known as a “Pass Thru” or “Power cig”.

Your ongoing daily supply of nicotine from new cartomizers (refills or carts) – generally electronic cigarette companies declare that the cart is approx. 20-30 normal cigarettes; in my experience they are more like 15-18 normal cigarettes.

Over the year buy four new batteries are bought to replace the original batteries – rechargeable batteries will run out of steam just like on a laptop or electric toothbrush. Look for a voltage of 4-4.5 volts as these are sturdier and will last longer. Also you may need 1 new USB charger in case you break the original.

The cost of a packet of 20 cigarettes is around £9.50/day = total cost approx £3500 per year

= SAVING of £2500 per year when you switch to e-cigarettes.

This means that it only takes a couple of weeks before your initial cost of the above vape pen kit plus additions (£60 + £15 + £20=£95.00) will become cheaper than buying normal cigarettes (normal cigarettes would cost you; 14 days x £9=£126). After 14 days you start saving real money and start to get healthy.

The e cig Portable Charging Case – a must have option for your electronic cigarette

It’s definitely a good idea to invest in a portable charging case (PCC). This can be used to recharge 2-4 batteries individually whilst on the move and when away from a power socket or USB connection. The PCC needs to be charged up first – say overnight. These are a must in my opinion and cost around £25-£50 depending on battery size.

E-liquids – or e-juice can be used with vape pen cartridges to supplement your ongoing daily supply of nicotine – here you use the e-liquid to refill empty cartridges or use specifically designed empty cartridges. This works out slightly cheaper than using cartridges. However it is simpler to start out using pre-filled refills as this avoids problems with spillage and leakage of e-liquid that contains toxic nicotine.